Are You Asking Your Tarot Cards ALL the Right Questions?

What About the Tarot Flip-Side?

Question the Question

I have seen a lot written about how to properly formulate a question when you are asking for intuitive guidance from tools like Tarot cards – and the same applies when asking an intuitive reader. Suggestions like being specific, clear and unambiguous with the question. And being certain you are completely open to receiving any answer. Avoiding yes/no questions or those that begin with “should I”.

All of these are important guidelines, but I believe there is something still missing. And that is what I will call asking the “flip side” question.

See You on the Flip Side

For example, let’s say you’re frustrated at work because you feel underpaid and have been passed up for promotions so are looking for a job. You just had an interview yesterday and you are nervous that you didn’t put your put your best foot forward.  It is natural to want to get some intuitive guidance on the situation.

You may have already learned that asking “Will I get the job?” is a very limited question that will not likely result in good intuitive guidance. The future is never set in stone and free will – both of yourself and of others – is always in play so these types of questions rarely result in good information.

So you might think to ask instead “What should I know about yesterday’s job interview?” This is a much better question and you’ll likely get some good information if you ask it. But you’re still only going to get part of the picture.

Let’s say you simply decide to pull one Tarot card on this question and you get the “Ace of Pentacles”. This often interpreted as leading to new job opportunities so you might feel great and that the interview went better than you realized. So it seems likely you might expect a job offer to be forthcoming!

Awesome, right? This seems like a great outcome. What more could you ask for? Well… Have you considered the flip side?

In this case, you should also be considering what might happen if you decide to stay at your current job instead. Let’s say you also ask that question and now you get the “Ten of Pentacles”!

If your only goal for leaving your current job was to make more money, you might have other options to consider! This card is often interpreted as achievement and the pinnacle success at work. So it may be an indication of even more opportunity if you stayed at your current job instead. Perhaps you realize you never asked for the raise or promotion, or deep down you haven’t done anything to earn it and this inspires you to go for it because you otherwise really do like your job.

It might also be a good idea to ask an additional flip side question of what would happen if you passed up any offer from yesterday’s interview and instead kept interviewing. Perhaps this time you get “The Emperor”! This could indicate that if you keep interviewing, another job opportunity could be forthcoming that will allow you to have more of a leadership role.

So by asking the flip side questions, you may actually be lucky enough to realize you may have a choice between three good options! If you had stopped at the first question you might miss the chance to consider all of them and settled for the first seemingly good option presented to you.

What If There’s Worse Than Bad?

The reverse can often be true as well. Sometimes, the intuitive answer to a question you ask seems “bad” and it is natural to assume you should do the opposite without considering if that outcome might be even worse!

For example, let’s say some friends invite you for a weekend trip away. You think it might be fun, but you’ve had a stressful week at work and part of you would rather just relax at home alone. Plus you just know your friend is going to ask you to drive her and you’re not sure you’re up to it. So you might ask “What would be the outcome if I go on the trip with my friends this weekend”? Let’s say you pull the “Two of Swords” card.

This card is often associated with indecision and confusion about choices. So the plans might be in flux, or you might face some conflict or indecisiveness on the trip. This doesn’t exactly sound like the fun weekend getaway you had in mind so you decide you’re going to pass and stay home instead.

But what might happen if you don’t go on the trip? If you’re looking for guidance to make a decision, you should arm yourself with all the information. So you might ask the flip-side question “What would be the outcome if I pass up the trip and stay home this weekend instead”? And maybe this time the card you pick is “The Tower”!

This card is one of the most challenging for most people and its energy is about destruction and turmoil. Few people invite this type of energy into their lives willingly – particularly when they are just hoping for a relaxing weekend! So suddenly that weekend trip might sound more appealing.

But if you hadn’t asked this “flip side” question, you may have opted to stay home only to find that your neighbor accidentally scratches your car. There might be a resulting argument where your temper flares after your stressful week at work – escalating the argument into a physical altercation and destroying your relationship permanently with your neighbor! But if you had been away this weekend the encounter could have been avoided completely and you might live in harmony with them for years to come!

Look on the Flip Side

Things are rarely just black and white. Sometimes there are no “good” answers, just degrees of challenges or unpleasantness. And other times we might have an embarrassment of riches when we look at our options. But wouldn’t you rather have all the information to make the best decisions by asking the flip side questions?

If you make a decision a limited perspective, you may find the outcome is not what you wanted and this could erode your trust in your intuition. So always be sure to ask about the flip side!